Blackwood: 58 MSHA citations
Coal
Partridge,
Letcher County,
KY
·
Abandoned and Sealed
MSHA Mine ID: 1519078
Blackwood has $31K in proposed MSHA penalties and $13K outstanding across 1 contested dockets, plus health sampling and the full incident record.
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- Fatalities
- 0
- Total incidents
- 3
- Years on record
- 2008
- Latest incident
- Feb 2008
Compliance record
MSHA citations since 2007
23
significant & substantial
$30,686
proposed penalties
59% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $12,541 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2007
n/a
citations per 100 inspection hours
ⓘ
This rate is recorded citations divided by MSHA inspection hours, per 100 hours. It reflects inspection effort, not mine size or production.
Rate withheld: 577 inspection hours is too few for a stable rate. A minimum of 1,000 inspection hours is required.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Blackwood has $31K in proposed MSHA penalties and $13K outstanding across 1 contested dockets.
Penalty disposition
ⓘ
Differences between proposed and paid penalties reflect both settlements and conference reductions and amounts still owed. Outstanding is the balance currently owed.
55 assessments are final orders; 1 contested dockets.
Of $14K in penalties contested before the Commission, $14K was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2008-02-20.
Source: MSHA assessed-violations and conference/litigation data, updated weekly.
Violation severity profile
ⓘ
Shares are computed over citations that carry the MSHA gravity and negligence coding; a small share of records are uncoded.
41.8%
significant & substantial
0.0%
high negligence or reckless
41.8%
reasonably likely or greater
18.2%
permanently disabling or fatal if injury occurs
Negligence coding: 0.0% none, 7.3% low, 92.7% moderate, 0.0% high, 0.0% reckless.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.
When citations were contested
ⓘ
Contesting a citation before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission is a lawful right. These figures state the public outcomes of that process, from MSHA's Contested Violations file.
1
citations taken to the federal commission · 2% of citations on record
100%
S&S designation survived the contest
ⓘ
Counts a Significant & Substantial citation as surviving when a settlement or judge's decision kept the designation, or the contest was dismissed or defaulted so the citation stands as issued. Vacated and withdrawn citations, and settlements that removed the designation, count against.
of 1 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
0%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$14K proposed, $14K after decisions · industry: 39%
Source: MSHA Contested Violations file (public record), updated weekly. A dismissed or defaulted contest leaves the citation standing as issued; a vacated or withdrawn citation is removed from the violation record. Latest contest filed 2007-11-08.
Contested penalties
ⓘ
A reduction or dismissal at the Commission is a lawful outcome of contesting a proposed penalty. Figures are the proposed amount and the amount upheld in the docket's decision.
Largest penalties this mine contested before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, with the outcome on record.
| Docket |
Decision |
Judge |
Year |
Proposed / upheld |
| KENT 2008-148 |
Default |
Lesnick |
2009 |
$14K → $14K |
Source: FMSHRC civil penalty dockets and decisions (public record), updated weekly.
MSHA sampling at Blackwood shows 91% of 55 respirable coal dust samples met the 1.5 mg/m3 standard.
Health sampling
ⓘ
A sample is a point in time compliance measurement, not an individual exposure history. These figures describe MSHA sampling records and do not establish causation or personal dose.
Respirable coal dust
ⓘ
Respirable coal dust and silica figures cover coal facilities. Dust compliance is measured against the current 1.5 mg/m3 standard; samples predating the 2014 standard are included, so compliance rates are a coarse historical signal.
Last sampled: 2008-03-21, 18 years ago
29 samples taken by MSHA inspectors, 26 by the operator.
Most-sampled occupations
- CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR26
- ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (INTAKE SIDE)4
- ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (RETURN SIDE)4
Silica (quartz)
Last sampled: 2008-01-25, 18 years ago
Most-sampled occupations
- CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR3
Noise
ⓘ
The share counts noise samples whose measured dose exceeded the 90 dBA permissible exposure limit. It describes the sampled workplace, not what reached the miner's ear: hearing conservation programs and the hearing protection worn during the shift are recorded separately and are not reflected here.
Last sampled: 2008-01-16, 18 years ago
Most-sampled occupations
- CONTINUOUS MINER OPERATOR2
- ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (INTAKE SIDE)2
- ROOF BOLTER (TWIN HEAD) (RETURN SIDE)2
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Health sampling trend
ⓘ
A sample is a point in time compliance measurement, not an individual exposure history. These figures describe MSHA sampling records and do not establish causation or personal dose.
Respirable coal dust by year
ⓘ
Respirable coal dust and silica figures cover coal facilities. Dust compliance is measured against the current 1.5 mg/m3 standard; samples predating the 2014 standard are included, so compliance rates are a coarse historical signal.
| Year |
within 1.5 mg/m3 |
samples |
| 2008 |
100% |
12 |
| 2007 |
88% |
43 |
Silica (quartz) by year
| Year |
silica avg (%) |
samples |
| 2008 |
4.3 |
1 |
| 2007 |
5.8 |
2 |
Noise by year
| Year |
over PEL |
samples |
| 2008 |
0% |
5 |
| 2007 |
0% |
7 |
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly.
Workforce and production
ⓘ
Coal production is reported quarterly and lags the current period; the most recent quarters may be incomplete.
| Year |
Employees |
Coal produced (tons) |
| 2008 |
14 |
44,510 |
| 2007 |
27 |
123,199 |
Source: MSHA quarterly employment and production, updated weekly.
Blackwood sits in Letcher County, Kentucky, where the Census mining category is 3.5% of county employment.
Local economic context
ⓘ
County figures come from the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey, 5-year pooled estimates, so the 2023 vintage covers 2019 through 2023. The Census category is 'mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction', which is broader than MSHA jurisdiction and includes oil and gas workers no mine employs. These figures describe the surrounding county, not this mine, and are not a factor in any specific incident.
Letcher County, Kentucky · Population 21,146
3.5%
Mining share of county employment
$40,501
Median household income
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-year estimates.
Quarterly safety rates
ⓘ
Citations per million reported employee-hours. Rates begin in 2000, when MSHA's quarterly employment data starts; earlier incidents are counted but cannot be rate-adjusted. Quarters under 100,000 reported hours are greyed: too few hours for a stable rate.
Citations per million employee-hours, as reported to MSHA
| Quarter |
Hours worked |
Citations |
S&S |
Per 1M hrs |
| 2008 Q3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
| 2008 Q2 |
2,226 |
0 |
0 |
0.0 |
| 2008 Q1 |
24,508 |
13 |
6 |
530.4 |
| 2007 Q4 |
21,813 |
6 |
1 |
275.1 |
| 2007 Q3 |
18,626 |
10 |
3 |
536.9 |
| 2007 Q2 |
4,808 |
18 |
9 |
3743.8 |
No fatalities recorded at this mine.
Reportable incidents
3 on file
2008 · 3 incidents
Cumberland River Coal Co., Inc. · Accident type, without injuries
A roof fall in the #7 heading between crosscuts #17 and #19. Fall was approximately 100' ling and from 1' to 10 feet in height. Most equipment had been moved from the section prior to the fall and the rest of the equipment is now removed. Section has been abandoned.
Cumberland River Coal Co., Inc. · Accident type, without injuries
A roof fall in #6 heading between intersection #18 and #19. Fall was 50 feet long and 3 to 8 feet high. Area was cribbed off and equipment was being moved off the section.
Cumberland River Coal Co., Inc. · Accident type, without injuries
A roof fall at 18 crosscut between #4 and #5 entries. Fall was approximately 10 feet long and between 3 and 5 feet thick. Area was cribbed off.